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 Theros Staal (3-3) Vs Shy Boy (1-3) – Heavyweight
Theros Staal started his Highland Games career very well. Back to back first round stoppages over Eric Patcherson and Dixie Normus earned him a shot at a higher level of opponent; Pedro Lazaro. Lazaro, our number 1 contender whom is scheduled to fight for the title tomorrow night, is known for grinding his opponents down over the distance. This wasn’t the case when Staal competed against him. The fight lasted guy two rounds before Pedro knocked Theros out. Staal was also stopped against Thompson in his next contest.
Shy Boy has had a tough start to his career. In his fight fight, Boy was KOed by the best heavyweight outside of Highland Games; San Terra. Since joining Highland Games, Shy Boy has went 1-2. A Unanimous Decision victory over Bernd Muller has kept him employed this far, but a win against Theros Stall could be a major game changer in the future of Shy Boy’s career.
It’s expected that the loser of this fight will be released from the company.
Jax Dax (1-2) Vs Dave Ysengrin (1-0) – Heavyweight
Jax has been plagued by cuts in his career so far, sporting nasty gashes in all 3 of his professional fights, two of which saw the referee step in as a result of the lacerations. A lone win over Billy The Kid has shown that Jax does have power when given the opportunity, but it will really be interesting to see if he can survive that long without being opened up.
It’s the Laddington Bear himself. The castoff of the Ysengrin clan, was given a big opportunity when he signed to Highland Games without ever making his martial arts debut. This was likely down to the experience of his manager, Michael Breakley. Michael can’t get all the credit though. Dave took grabbed the opportunity with both hands when he took just 2 minutes 27 seconds to knockout Tupac Adebowale at Highland Games 31.
Marius Wieneke (3-1) Vs Steven Dame (5-3) – Heavyweight
Marius Wienke has been competing in Highland Games for a while now and began his career with an upset victory over Viktor Flik. 3 straight submission victories put him in a very advantageous position, but unfortunately the hype train was derailed when he clashed with Sailele Lealofi. This time, it was Wienke that was forced to tap off, getting caught in a surprise kimura which threatened to separate his shoulder from its socket.
Steven Dame has an experienced run in the independent circuit before making his Highland Games debut. Despite going 1-2 in his first 3 contests, a 4 fight winning streak saw him debut for the top Island organisation late in December. Unfortunately, Mib Louie was his first opponent, and Dame fell at the hands of the knockout specialist.
Christian Long (5-4) Vs Antonio The Sparta (2-4) – Heavyweight
Christian Long is fighting for his career in this fight….WHAT? Christian was the most spectacular knockout specialist in the early days of Highland Games. In his debut, he knocked Alexey Juralev out with a head kick after only 26 seconds of fighting. That was the fight which earned him the opportunity to fight Barney Gumble for the inaugural Highland Games Heavyweight Title. Long was defeated, but that’s to be expected with the skillset Gumble has demonstrated since the start of his career. Long was far from defeated though, as he came back to knockout out both Diamond Andy and Elias Page, earning Knockout of the Night once and Fight of the Night in both. Long was back and next took on Nelson Frazier Jr. A superman punch saw Nelson take the victory, which again is nothing to be ashamed about. But another two losses have saw Thor Heyerdahl and Chiyono Fuji take wins at Christian’s expense, seeing the kickboxing killer go 0-3. A fourth straight loss and Christian Long will be released, marking the end of an era for the Highland Games heavyweight division.
Antonio The Sparta is your typical average mixed martial artists. A win over Shy Boy, a loss to Eddie Kilpatrick, a win over Grey Blanchard and another loss to Mahboobullah Muhammad, Sparta has gained absolutely no momentum thus far in his mixed martial arts career. It’s really hard to talk about Sparta because it’s hard to really point out highs and lows. But one this is absolutely certain, a win over Christian Long would be absolutely gigantic for Sparta and would really change everything around for him. It doesn’t matter if he’s coming off a loss or not, beating a former title contender would be the greatest moment of the 25 year old’s professional career.
Dimentio Boychello (4-4) Vs Ali Mouba (4-2) – Heavyweight
You could describe Dimentio Boychello was a talented journeyman. While he is capable of beating a lot of competitors, he rarely trains and has fought all over The Island. Early in his career he took losses to Rape Alarm and Potter Dunn, but more recently huge wins over The Avengers Avenge and Elias Page have really helped Boychello pocket some cash. In his last fight, which was also his debut for the promotion, Dimentio lost to top contender Mase Force just before the bell in the first round.
Exactly one month ago, Ali Mouba was on top of the world. 4-0 with wins over Avengers Avenge and Jacek Trzebiatowski, Mouba was trash talking everyone and making a very big name for himself. When he clashed with Jason Barrett, it seemed like it was business as usual. Jason was put on his back and was being beaten up. In the second round, boom, Barrett floored Mouba and hurt him bad. The stellar wrestler got the takedown and hung on until the end of the round. It was 1-1 going into the 3rd, and Mouba was winning after a big takedown. After 2 minutes, the referee stood the fighters up. Neither man did much, until a gigantic overhand right ended the fight, seeing Jason Barrett emerge as the champion. Another loss to Nelson Frazier Jr, and now Mouba’s hype is completely gone. His brother currently holds gold in World Combat, so Mouba desperately needs a win in this fight.
Quar Fang (4-2) Vs Benny Askren (4-2) – Heavyweight
I personally never thought Quar Fang would achieve anything in Highland Games. Plagued by cuts and apparently unable to avoid his opponents strikes. In the first clash between these two at Highland Games 2, Fang was ripped opened horrendously. The fight only lasted 26 seconds before the cut stopped the fight. It looked like the end of the road for Fang, but 3 straight victories since, including Knockout of the Night bonuses in his last two over Lenny Mclean and Jason Newstead, have really turned things around for the convict from Fiji.
Benny Askren almost feels offended that he has been offered this match up. His debut against Fang didn’t even last 30 seconds, and he feels like the belief that the fight will be any different this time is insulting. Asrken’s two losses came to tough fighters in Jacek Trzebiatowski and Keijo Virtanen, but Askren has been a very solid mid card fighter since he started in the organisation. His last fight, a decision win over Chikere Morce, Askren picked up arguably his biggest win and wants to make lightning strike twice by stopping Quar Fang early once again.
Eduardo Massa Alcantara (5-2) Vs Hughtavious Mingo (4-1) – Light Heavyweight
Eduardo has proven several times that he possesses some devastating knockout power in each of his hands. Despite losing his Highland Games debut in a rematch to James Helm (whom he previously made submit with strikes), Eduardo has defeated 3 straight opponents, all in the first rounds. If Eduardo is capable of extending that streak to a fourth time, he might find himself just one win off of a Highland Games Light Heavyweight Title Shot.
Mingo, like Eduardo, lost his HG debut. Unfortunately it was a submission that halted the West Monroe resident, getting kimura’d by Saintly Fish. Since then, he has defeated both Elroy Royal and Hulk Hogan in Highland Games, and scored another first round victory to The Terminator independently when his contract ran out.
This fight should be a fantastic stand up affair with Fight of the Night written all over it.
Alexey Juralev (6-1) Vs Mib Louie (7-2) – Heavyweight
A quick run down of the current heavyweight situation:- Pedro Lazaro is fighting against Barney Gumble for the title. If Lazaro is unsuccessful, his stablemate Clinton Offley will get the next title shot. If Lazaro is able to take the belt home however, then the winner of this fight will be taking him on.
Alexey Juralev hasn’t lost since his second fight when he took on Christian Long at Highland Games 2. Since then, his next 5 moments haven’t even heard the bell to signal the end of the first round. In addition to this Juralev has picked up 4 post fight bonuses totalling 7 and a half thousand dollars. Top names like Diamond Andy, Amine Nesquik and Kellen Patrick have all crumbled under the wrath that is Alexey Juralev’s striking. Winning once again puts Juralev is an extremely advantageous position.
Looking to end that streak is Mib Louie. Arguably the most impressive striker Highland Games has seen, Louie has been knocking out top guys since the very start of his career. Jacek Trzebiatowski, Pedro Lazaro, Chiyono Fuji, Andrya Ignatov, Steven Dame and Jason Barrett, all dangerous opponents who have fallen victim to the extremely high level kick boxing that Louie brings to the table in every fight. Louie’s only two losses are to Barney Gumble, an excusable one, and also to potential number one contender Clinton Offley. Since then, Mib has made it two straight and a win over yet another top guy at the calibre of Alexey Juralev can earn him a second chance to take Gumble’s belt.
Massimo Benvenuti (12-1) Vs Arnavut Sevket (5-0) – Middleweight
Massimo Benvenuti is one of the most experienced and talented guys in Island history. Amassing a whopping 12-1 record, Massimo has seen and done it all. Two stoppages of Grant Morisson, stoppages of Rodrigo Rojas and Massimo Paterno, decisions over Jonah Sorentino and Big Tree, Benvenuti is an absolute killer in that cage. At Highland Games 18, Massimo B achieved his dream and become the Highland Games Middleweight Champion. Massimo was able to make just one defence before he was upset in the opener by Massa Hurmaaja. Another win here would likely earn Massimo a crack at Razor MuayThai’s belt, and he is absolutely adamant that he will finish this season as the top P4P fighter.
Being gifted an absolutely massive opportunity here is Arnavut Sevekt. Fighting out of Turkey, Sevket is capable no matter where the fight ends up. Solid boxing, great wrestling and a BJJ Purple Belt are just a small insight into the danger that an opponent might face if they take this man on. With a perfect 5-0 record in his career including an upset victory over Antonio Gracie in his last fight, it’s expected that is Sevekt can perform the biggest upset thus far on The Island, he will earn yet another huge opportunity, this time with gold on the line.
Don Killuminati (6-0) Vs Hideki Higkiko (7-1) – LIGHTWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
Phew, it’s been a long road of writing but we’ve eventually got here. It’s the Lightweight Championship Match!
I can safely say that Don Killuminati is my favourite fighter on The Island. He comes out to win and he’s defied the odds time and time again. When facing the heavy favourite Short Fuse for the title, no one really expected Don to do too much in the fight. Perhaps he could have made it competitive, but winning? It just wasn’t on the cards. An outstanding and amazing fight saw Killuminati edge a razor close decision, walking away with that championship belt. Some people talk about the skill level sky rocketing as soon as you put that belt around your waist, and Don Killuminati is one of those special cases. In two defences, Don Killuminati has really not needed to push himself two much in his destruction of both KR AD and Jack Stick, both of whom were extremely worthy title challengers at the time of the contests. Killuminati is looking unstoppable, but everyone loses sometime.
Hideki Higkiko is on the other end of the scale. While also being a striker, Hideki takes no chances in search of a stoppage. With all but one of his victories coming by way of unanimous decision, this top notch kickboxer likes to keep his distance and pick his opponents off as they rush in to try and defeat him. Higkiko has also earned Fight of the Night twice, and also avenged his only loss to Scooby Ali at Highland Games 34. With an opponent record of 26-17 at the time of the fights, Hideki has been in there with some of the toughest and most experienced guys that The Island has had to offer in the 155 division, and the Osaka, Japan native has turned away every challenger, including the Scooby Ali, thus far.
This match up should be extremely interesting. If Don Killuminati isn’t on his A game, he’s going to get caught coming forward and worn down moving into the championship rounds. Hideki could very will take the title home with him tonight, so this fight is one of the most must see contests we’ve had in the promotion yet.
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